221225 Christmas Communion With Christ and His Church

MP: Let Us Draw Near

Introduction:

1. The Pleasure of Presence

On Sundays, the first day of the week we gather as a church family, together. All are welcome, none is asked to leave. There is complete confidence in all of us that when we arrive that the doors will be open, the atmosphere warm and inviting. Smiles are shared and there are sincere handshakes… we are a family. Many family gatherings are not so, but here we love each other. At our weekly gatherings we share needs, prayer requests, concerns - we rely upon each other. This family needs each other and today, Sunday, and most specially on Christmas we are all ready to be together and adore the One who made that possible.

2. The Absurdity of Being Asked to Leave

We are welcomed to worship. We are accepted to adore. We as sinners saved from our just penalty are grateful to join with others who know our Savior, Jesus the Christ. Now, as recipients of grace, warmth, love, fellowship and care… how ridiculous would it be if we asked someone to leave after they arrived. It would go cross grain against our expectations, our personal experience. We would be shocked to be shown the door would we not? Why?

3. The Church an Extension of Christ

We expect that the body, with Christ as its head would act as He commands. Would extend grace as He did and so it is entirely impossible to consider the inconceivable notion that we would be rejected. We know, we understand, we have been taught through the Bible and our own experience that we can confidently come here, to worship, to fellowship. We are wanted, desired, loved not because we dress nice, or are good people. No we are extended grace by the body because the Christ has extended grace to us.

Christ’s goodness and grace guarantees us access through the Gateway which He guards. All are welcome because of Him, none are cast out - John 6.37 ““All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never cast out.”

4. Access Apart From Personal Worthiness

He is our confident assurance, He is the One on whom we have set our hope and so we come to enjoy sweet communion with Him. We did not gain access by following a set of ten laws. We did not gain access because of our family name or our good standing in the community or because we pay our taxes or give a generous offering. We are only allowed access because of and through Christ. He is our confident assurance.

Hebrews 10:19–25 (LSB)

I. New Access Granted Through The Body and Blood of Christ | Confident Access Through Christ

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus,

20 by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh,

21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,

22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Previously not allowed into the holy places

Leviticus 16.2 “And Yahweh said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he shall not enter at any time into the holy place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, so that he will not die; for I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.”

Instead of fearing to enter the Holy of Holies we can confidently come because of Christ

V19

ADJ: “HOLY PLACES” The Holy Place is a reference to the Holy of Holies - the place of ultimate diving proximity and intimacy within the Tabernacle/Temple

V20

ADJ: “NEW” Having recently come into being

VERB: “INAUGURATED” put into effect or make available for the first time

V21

ADJ: “GREAT” Supreme, out of the ordinary

V22

ADJ: “SINCERE” True, Genuine, Authentic

ADJ: “EVIL” Wicked, base, evil, vicious, degenerate, sick, worthless

ADJ: “PURE” Free from dirt or impurity, ritually pure (DISTINCTION BETWEEN RITUAL PURITY AND ACTUAL PURITY)

VERB: “LET US DRAW NEAR” To move towards or approach προσερχώμεθα - seems to be including the idea of intent, determination, not easily dissuaded or prevented

Access through Christ - Reference to Communion

John 14.6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me.”

John 10.9 ““I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.”

Ephesians 2.18 “for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.”

Access and Escape

1 Cor 10.13 “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man, but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”

Sprinkled Clean - Reference to Baptism

Ezekiel 36.25 ““Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your uncleanness and from all your idols.”

1 Cor 6.11 “And such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.”

2 Cor 7.1 “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

1 Tim 1.5 “But the goal of our command is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and an unhypocritical faith.”

1 Peter 3.21 “Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal of a good conscience to God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,”

Confidence

1 John 3.21 “Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God;”

False Assurance

John 3.36 ““He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.””

II. He Has Promised So Trust

23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

God is faithful

1 Cor 1.9 “God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

2 Thess 3.3 “But the Lord is faithful, who will strengthen and guard you from the evil one.”

1 John 2.25 “And this is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life.”

God doesn’t play emotional and manipulative games with Christians - we are sealed and saved because of Christ. When God forgives us because of Christ it cannot be lost but does require belief/obedient

ADJ: “WITHOUT WAVERING” Marked by firm determination or resolution, fixed, unshakeable

ADJ: “FAITHFUL” trustworthy, dependable, steadfast affection or allegiance

III. Let Us Gather

24 And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds,

25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

Gathered by God

Jeremiah 32.37 ““Behold, I will gather them out of all the lands to which I have banished them in My anger, in My wrath, and in great indignation; and I will cause them to return to this place and make them inhabit it in safety.”

Behold days are coming

Ezekiel 12.23 ““Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “I will make this proverb cease so that they will no longer use it as a proverb in Israel.” But speak to them, “The days draw near as well as the fulfillment of every vision.”

Encouraging one another

Col 2.2 “so that their hearts may be encouraged, having been held together in love, even unto all the wealth of the full assurance of understanding, unto the full knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself,”

Tit 2.14 “who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from all lawlessness, and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good works.”

V24

ADJ: “GOOD” of moral excellence, beautiful, fine, useful

The prepositions of this passage are fascinating especially considering the momentum of the passage, its inertia and movement - the action that takes place.

Come to Communion by Christ’s blood and through His flesh. He is over His household and so believers are encouraged to unite our hearts with Him closely; assured in our hearts that what He has done is remove us from our sinful state. Fully assured in our hearts

Notice the repetition of the heart - the heart helps us understand the flow of the prepositions in this passage.

As the Right upper chamber or ventricle of the heart receives dull and tired blood so the church receives tired Christians, depleted in their ministry that have been circulating through their contexts

Come into the Holy place by Christ’s blood (v19) and through His Body (v20). He is the Head that is over the Body - He organizes, originates and ordains this so that we might have Communion with Him and His body - the Church (v21-22).

Then the blood flows into the Right Lower Chamber of the heart where through worship and instruction they are reinvigorated

The Communion that we enjoy unites our hearts with His and we can be assured in our hearts that He has removed from us our sinful state

Then the re-oxygenated blood returns into the Left Upper Chamber and is pumped out into the body through the Left Lower Chamber

This happens repeatedly, 100K per day, 40M per year and 3B per lifetime - without the active heart the human dies.

Conclusion

Our confident access through Christ has a purpose - communion, relationship, fellowship all to ultimately build each other up for the work that He has graciously given us - Ephesians 2.8-10 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

The day is coming, hey, it is even here now when the Church has been abandoned as unnecessary, unneeded. We can have coffee on the couch and have church. Friends this is not church. Where is the gathering of the saints? Where is the equipping of the saints? Where is the exercise of our spiritual gifts that were graciously given to us? Sidelined, unimportant, secondary to our comfort, to contributing to the comfort of the hurting and those who need. Don’t be like that!

You were bought with the precious blood of Christ not to sit, not to waste time but to work

1 Peter 1:13–25 (LSB)

13 Therefore, having girded your minds for action, being sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

14 As obedient children, not being conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,

15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your conduct;

16 because it is written, “YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY.”

17 And if you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your sojourn,

18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your futile conduct inherited from your forefathers,

19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.

20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but appeared in these last times for the sake of you

21 who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a love of the brothers without hypocrisy, fervently love one another from the heart,

23 for you have been born again not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.

24 For,

“ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS,

AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE FLOWER OF GRASS.

THE GRASS WITHERS,

AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF,

25 BUT THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER.”

And this is the word which was proclaimed to you as good news.